


Just You and Me, Together

by Embelom



Series: TommyInnit Centric Stuff! [3]
Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: AU- Dæmons, Angst, BAMF Sam | Awesamdude, Clementine the Moth - Freeform, Fluff, Gen, Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, Parent Phil Watson (Video Blogging RPF), Running Away, Spying, Villain Clay | Dream (Video Blogging RPF), Wilbur Soot and Technoblade and TommyInnit are Siblings, Witch Niki Nihachu, but im putting em both back up!! <3, dummy impulse control made me delete this and my tommyinnit centric series
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-18
Updated: 2021-03-19
Packaged: 2021-03-27 19:14:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,393
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30127527
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Embelom/pseuds/Embelom
Summary: In a world full of dæmons, Philza, or Lord Philza, is known to be a great, powerful, kind man. He lives in a nice house just a thirty minute walk away from London, and he has three sons, who he cares deeply for. But when an unexpected invitation appears on Lord Philza’s doorstep, he orders for himself and his two oldest sons to accompany him on a journey that they’ve excluded their younger, Tommy, who is thirteen, from. With the company of their dæmons, the party of six left, leaving Tommy alone in their house for a grand total of two weeks.But what happens when the little sparkfire that is Tommy Innit, follows them, with the help of his dæmon, Clementine?(Or: Dæmon AU with Tommy running away to be nosy and see what his family is up to!)
Relationships: Cara | CaptainPuffy & TommyInnit, Clay | Dream & TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), Sam | Awesamdude & TommyInnit, Technoblade & TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), Toby Smith | Tubbo & TommyInnit, TommyInnit & Phil Watson (Video Blogging RPF), Wilbur Soot & Technoblade & TommyInnit & Phil Watson, Wilbur Soot & TommyInnit
Series: TommyInnit Centric Stuff! [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2217279
Comments: 7
Kudos: 54





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [An Invitation to All](https://archiveofourown.org/works/27812167) by [Habpy_Flaat](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Habpy_Flaat/pseuds/Habpy_Flaat). 



> (REUPLOADED: dummy impulse and inferiority got in the way of me continuing this and had me orphan the fic and delete my tommyinnit centric stuff series!! im still planning to continue this, and im putting the series back up! <3) 
> 
> I...I don't know what this is. As all of my ideas do, this crack idea, as along with many others that might be released soon, were all thought of in the wondrous hours of 2am. This chapter is short because this is the prologue, but I assure you, as the story progresses, it will get longer! This was inspired by "An Invitation to All" by Habpy_Flaat, and a book that I'm reading at the moment that my cousin gave me! I thought it would be a neat idea to squish them together, in a way!
> 
> Anyways, I hope you guys enjoy!

“Shhh! Clementine, quiet, or they’ll hear you!” Tommy shushed harshly, turning to his companion, who was currently in a moth form, one of her favorites. “If we want to do this right, we have to wait!” 

If Clementine could roll her eyes, she would. “They won’t be able to hear me unless I allow them to, dickhead,” She snorted. “And I already know that! Besides, I’m in one of my smallest forms.” 

Curse words were gradually becoming a part of both of their vocabulary. After Phil had slipped up a curse word in front of the child, followed by Techno, accidentally, and followed by Wilbur purposefully, he started to pick up on a few things. Secretly, he and Clementine had been sneaking out to Wilbur and his panda dæmon, Milo’s room to ask for more curse words to mess around with. At first, Wilbur had played dumb and scolding, not wanting to tell him anything. But then, looking at the door behind Tommy carefully, he started to whisper all that he knew to the boy and his dæmon, and the rest was history. Tommy, soon enough, had barged into the kitchen one morning screaming, “What is up _bitches!”,_ to which he got grounded for by Phil, who had dropped a plate he was holding from the sudeness, and was made fun of by Techno, but Wilbur seemed to be happy and was laughing, so he counted it as a win.

Wilbur was the only person in the family with a male dæmon, which was quite rare; the ability to have a dæmon that was the same gender as you. Even as a little kid, Wilbur had always boasted about it, and he seemed proud of it, too. Milo would hold his head high in pride as well, not offended or angry for being put like that way at all- after all, he was happy he was special, too. When Milo had finally taken his final shape as a Giant Panda, it was...a bit difficult to squeeze him in through the house, but they managed fine. With the market only being a thirty minutes walk away, and with the status of their family in general, they were bound to get whatever they asked for. 

“Now, what are you two losers doin’?” 

Tommy let out a squawk of surprise as he looked up, him and Clementine flailing backwards in the presence of Techno and his boar dæmon, Carl, just right beside him. Clementine had let out a yell of surprise, the contents most likely containing a swear word, changing swiftly into a songbird to fly off and rest on Tommy’s right shoulder. The both of them had let out another cry when Tommy had fallen onto the ground when he lost his balance, Clementine turning her head to Tommy to make sure that he was alright. When the blonde looked up, Techno was staring down at them with a look of boredom, yet his eyes held some mirth, which Tommy absolutely did not miss.

“Nothing!” Huffed Tommy, glaring at his older sibling before getting up and dusting off his pants. “What the fuck are you doing here? You came out of nowhere!” 

“Language,” Hummed Techno idly. “Don’t let Dad hear you on that one; he’ll have to break another plate.” He smirked, and Carl let out a snort of amusement, to which Clementine flapped her wings defensively. Despite Carl being a girl, Techno had always called her that, and the boar didn’t seem to mind- in fact, it was like she preferred it, anyways. His explanation was simply, “It sounds better than another name I could think of anyways”. While his family didn’t quite understand, they left him alone on that topic. 

Tommy’s cheeks colored. “Shut the fuck up! I can do whatever the hell I want to, bitch!” He tried to surge forward to try and hit him, but Techno had to only put out his left palm to Tommy’s forehead to keep him still and stop him. Tommy could feel the stumps of the absence of Techno’s pinkie and ring finger. 

Techno only stared at him in amusement. “Uh-huh. Sure you can.” He teased before moving to the side and letting Tommy go, to which the blonde surged forward and almost tripped over himself before composing himself and turning to his brother. Techno’s long, light brunette hair- the same shade as Wilbur’s- was neatly tied into a high ponytail. His hair ranged down to his lower back, which Tommy found...sort of terrifying, how Techno was always so insistent and defensive of his hair. He would always wave Tommy off if even dared to mention the oddity of it, and he defended his hair as if it were his baby. Really, Tommy thinks that Techno and Wilbur have more in common then they let on, since Wilbur reacts the same exact way whenever Tommy should ever question the rat’s nest of a head he had, sometimes.

Tommy just groaned. “Ugh, is it lunchtime yet? I’m actually starving my fucking ass of here. I’m hungry! And Clem needs some food, too!” At this, Clementine nodded fervently, bobbing her head up and down as fast as she could, still in the form of a songbird. 

“I mean, we could ask Dad, if you want to.” A new voice joined in. Techno and Tommy turned to face Wilbur, who was standing there, laxed. Milo was right beside him, sitting down. Wilbur had his usual yellow sweater on, accompanied by his round glasses and his maroon beanie. Tommy and Clementine had jumped again, but this time more composed, whereas Techno and Carl didn’t even seem fazed by the unexpected pop-up of their sibling. 

“Holy shit!” Tommy yelped, pointing an accusatory finger at Wilbur. “Okay, so where the hell did you come from?” And then he turned back to Techno. “And also, where the hell did _you_ come from? Is this- what is this actual freaky voodoo shit?!” 

“Language, Tommy,” Chided Wilbur. 

_“You’re_ the one who taught me it!” 

“Wilbur, is that true?” 

Tommy slapped his hands over his face. “Oh my Prime, is everyone in this damn family out to get me, or something? Stop coming out of nowhere!” He huffed, but at the moment, he didn’t have the attention of his father, or his other family remembers. Right now, the attention was on Phil, who was looking at his technical middle child sternly, with Wilbur fiddling with his lanky fingers. Techno was just watching monotonously, but his eyes gave him away, Tommy could tell. 

Phil’s own dæmon was a beautiful, large phoenix named Kris. As of now, she was perched on Phil’s shoulder, much like Clementine was in her songbird form, and she gave a small nod of acknowledgement to the child before putting her attention back to the matter at hand. Tommy followed her gaze- it seemed like Phil was scolding Wilbur. Wilbur had his arms crossed, pouting, and Milo was sitting up, leaning against Wilbur’s legs, yet he looked a bit guilty. 

“I was only going to come up to tell you boys that lunch was ready,” Sighed Phil, like the disappointed parent he was. “And I come to this? Wilbur, you told me that you had nothing to do with it. You said that Tommy picked it up from the market when you two last went out!” 

Wilbur had the guts to smile, even when in trouble. “Whoops?” He offered. “Look, it’s not so bad! And really, Dad, you’re being kind of hypocritical, Mr. Holy-Fucking-Hell-Why-The-Fuck-Are-These-Eggs-So-Motherfucking-Hot.” A certain glint was in his eyes as he saw his father deflate, opening his mouth only to close it again. 

Phil shook his head, exasperated. “Fine, fine. But Tommy,” He looked to his youngest, who tensed up. “You _can_ swear, I’ll give you that, but just try to level it down, okay? We don’t need to be so vulgar, and I don’t want you to learn to be that way at such a young age. Understand?” 

“Yes, Dad,” Tommy deadpanned, like it was a practiced routine saying the phrase.

Phil nodded, seemingly satisfied. “Good!” A smile made its way onto his lips. “Now, who’s ready for lunch?” 

  
  


**_—Ω—_ **

  
  


Tommy had Clementine for as long as he could remember. 

Humans on this earth were born with dæmons next to them. Dæmons were a curious thing; they were an embodiment of what a person’s soul was, in the form of an organism. They could hear one another’s thoughts, they couldn’t get too far away from each other without it harming them, they could speak to one another, and they were perfectly platonically compatible. It was like having two of you, yet you were tied together by your souls and were stuck with one another. But Tommy never really complained about having Clementine. In fact, he loved her company. Techno and Wilbur...well, sometimes, they can get quite annoying, and Phil was busy doing some political things now and again, so Tommy didn’t want to bother him. But Clementine? Clementine was always there, whenever he needed her. He remembered the nights that were stormy and where he didn’t want to wake up Phil where Clementine turned into a cat and curled up on his lap for comfort. Or the time where Tommy had gotten lost at the market when he was seven, and Clementine flew as high as she could without straining their bond in order to find Techno, who was the person he went to the market with at the time. 

If Tommy had to pick a word for his family, though, it would be...intriguing, definitely; it was in such a way that, one one hand, he enjoyed and loved every second of it, but on the other, he felt as though they were withholding information from him, although Tommy couldn’t see why. Techno and Wilbur were sixteen, and Phil seemed to tell _them_ everything, almost as much as he tells Kris, so what’s stopping him from talking to Tommy? He’s sure he can handle it! He’s a Big Man, after all, and he knows how to defend himself! 

(Really, he doesn’t. Once, when he was nine, he wanted Techno to duel him, considering Techno had a very powerful sword, or so what his father told him. It was one of the only things that the family told him about that seemed odd except for, well, Techno’s fingers. But even then, it didn’t seem like they were telling the full truth. 

He remembers it clearly. Clementine was in the form of a leopard, while Tommy held a shining sword of his own; it glistened with iron, but he was kept safe. As long as Techno was there to supervise him, he knew that he wouldn’t get seriously injured. Meanwhile, Techno had a shimmering sword made from diamonds, glistening in the sun. He had turned the blade so it wasn’t on its deadly side and charged at Tommy without a second thought. 

Tommy was down onto the floor in just mere moments. He never went to confront Techno about sparring ever again. It was cool, though, he had to admit, but...he didn’t want to learn from Techno! He could teach himself, he was sure of it! He didn’t need stupid _Techno’s_ help with fighting and defendign himself. Besides, he and Clementine had come to an agreement that if something were to happen, Clementine, first off, would try to defend him at all costs. 

Yet, even if Tommy were to rerun that plan through his head, something about it made him feel uneasy, though he couldn’t pinpoint his exact feeling). 

And in short, he loved his dæmon with his whole heart and more, and honestly? He wished she would never stop changing form- that’s what made Clementine...well, Clementine! She was chaotic, risky, and unpredictable, much like himself and came in the form of her taking the shapes of other animals as well. She’ll stubbornly change forms on a whim, depending on her mood or what she thinks is cool at the time. Tommy knows that, eventually, when he reaches around sixteen, she’ll have to give up her shapeshifting abilities and be content with one form, but Tommy...he didn’t want that to happen, but it was the inevitable. Sometimes, he wondered what form she would choose. Would it be a moth, her favorite? Or maybe a jaguar, so she could protect him? Maybe a phoenix, like Kris, so she could fly besides her? He didn’t know. And when he asked Clementine the question, she would never answer him. It was like she didn’t know herself. 

But despite that, everything was perfect. He had a loving family, a wonderful dæmon, a luxurious home, a nice market that was a short distance where they were on foot, and he had everything a child could ever want. 

It was perfect.

  
  


**_—Ω—_ **

  
  


_“Dream,”_

_A man in a light green coat with a white, porcelain smiley face mask and a horse dæmon turned to face a witch. She was sitting on a pine branch floating a few inches off of the ground. The fair woman had short blonde hair that ran to her shoulders with hot pink front bangs. She wore a black headband and a black silk dress, not cold in the slightest in the deep forest with the cottage hidden in it. Resting on her lap from where she was sitting on her broom, there laid her cat dæmon. Her face was serious, yet smooth. You wouldn’t guess that she was four-hundred and fifty years old, would you?_

_“Niki,” The man with the mask greeted, bowing down slightly and lowering the boy in his hand. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”_

_The witch cleared her throat. “As you know, I do owe you a favour,” She began. “And if I recall, you told me that, if I were to have a vision of any danger regarding you or your friends, I should seek you out immediately, is that right?”_

_“You’re correct,” The man drawled lazily, looking very interested, however. “Where are you going with this? What did you see?”_

_“A child,”_

_The man scoffed. “A child? That is the danger? Niki, no offence, but I think that George, Sapnap, and I can handle a child.”_

_The witch paused. “Well...technically, children, and if you want to be specific, two children. But this is no joke.” She frowned. “My visions are no joke, Dream, I can assure you. You know that. You’re wise enough for that, aren’t you? So I suggest you listen, if you want my information. Otherwise, I can turn around right now and go the other way. You know that although we’re not on good terms, I do keep my word.”_

_“Very well. Go on, Nihachu.”_

_The witch nodded. “Thank you. As I was saying, these children, especially this one child, will be a lot of trouble for you and your friends. Your fates will cross, and with that, will come chaos. It will turn fine at first, but gradually, overtime, the collision between your fates will cause...casualties. Some of the people you may know, some of the people that you have yet to meet.” She explained calmly, as if she were talking about the weather. “If you want to change this destiny, I suggest you try and take control of one of the children in order to get him under your control; you’re fond of manipulation, aren’t you, Dream? I’ve heard that quite a lot, but I thought they were just rumors. But if they’re not, well, you know what to do.”_

_Dream’s head tilted, which looked...slightly demented and disturbing, considering the remarkably large smile his mask possessed. “And might I ask who this specific child is, the child you want me to take control over? I’m sure they couldn’t be_ that _much of a threat, surely, Niki….you must be crazy.”_

_Niki, however, shook her head. “I’m not, Dream,” Her voice was hard. “I’m being as serious as I can be. This child’s name is Tommy. You might not recognize the name, but I’m sure you’ll recognize this: he’s the child of Lord Philza and brother of Lord Techno and Lord WIlbur. Sound familiar?”_

_“Lord Phil…” Dream brought a hand up to his mask where his supposed lips would be. “That old man? I’ve heard of him. I wanted to encounter his son, Lord Techno, for a long time, but I haven’t until now. But to be the descendant of such a promising family tree…” Here, he paused, thinking. “Fine. I’ll do it, if it’s to protect me and my family. If this child is a threat, then I will have no trouble getting rid of him. And if I have to change the fates and destiny in order to do that, I will.” He suddenly laughed. “Thank you for bringing this to my attention, Nihachu, I wouldn’t have known otherwise. But I have to go.” Niki could hear the grin in his voice._

_“I have a letter to write.”_

_And with that, the man disappeared behind the trees and past the abandoned cottage house. Niki watched him and his dæmon leave, only deeming it safe when she had flown upwards into the sky for her departure. Her own dæmon, Zuko, stretched slightly, not at all afraid of the high drop. He knew that Niki would never drop him, and he was experienced in around five-hundred years of experience of riding with her, anyways. He was used to it. But, this time, he looked up at Niki, a look of confusion in his blue, wide eyes. His ear twitched._

_“You lied to him.”_

_“That I did.”_

_“Why?”_

_Niki smiled softly, tucking a piece of her hair behind her ear. “I promised him that I would relay any information that should come to harm to him; I never promised that my advice would be legitimate, did I? I stick to my word, Zuko, and you know that. Even to the worse people, if I make a promise to them, I intend to keep that promise through thick and thin. Besides,” She shrugged as she turned her broom around, looking for a village with a hotel. She was looking for two people specifically- a man with a golden shirt and a woman with white hair. “You know my soft spot for the innocent, and you know that I like to play around with the humans here. It’s fun to see what will happen, but I_ am _responsible with it.”_

_“Hm...well, no matter the outcome, I think we can both agree that it will turn out interesting, no?”_

_“That I think we can indeed agree on, Zuko, that we can agree on.”_

  
  


**_—Ω—_ **

  
  


It was two days later that they got the letter. 

It was a normal day, as usual. Tommy was outside, playing with Clementine, who had taken the form of a dog in order to fetch sticks he might throw or to chase him if they got to that point of playfulness. Wilbur was out watching him, strumming his guitar with Milo sleeping soundly next to him. Techno was still inside, presumably reading something with Carl, the two of them thought. And Phil? They had no idea what their father was doing whilst they were out. But, they were perfectly content. 

That was, well, until Phil had burst open the backyard door, hair a mess, eyes wild, and looking at WIlbur desperately. Kris, who flew outside, squawked in distress. “Wilbur,” He spoke icily calm, yet both Tommy, who had stopped messing around with Clementine to look at his father, knew that something else was going on. “Come back inside. I need to speak with you. Techno is at the dining room table. Meet us there, okay? Tommy?” He looked at the other blonde, who eagerly stared back, only to sag his shoulders in disappointment when Phil tried to force a smile. “You stay out here for a while, okay, kiddo? There’s just something that Wilbur, Techno, and I need to attend to- it’s nothing big, don’t worry about it! Wil? Come on.” 

Wilbur was frowning, mouth agape. Milo was already up, nudging Wilbur towards the door. Wilbur had turned around for a brief moment, waving his younger brother goodbye before scampering towards his father, closing the backyard door behind him, Milo hot on his trail. Clementine and Tommy stared after their family, stunned. Clementine transformed back into a moth, landing herself on Tommy’s shoulder. Tommy knew he should stop staring at the door, that wasn’t going to do anything, but what was going on? Phil- phil never usually seemed to be that panicky about anything, much less ordering a meeting between him and the twins. So what was going on? It had to be something important, that was quite evident enough- but what, is what the question was. He couldn’t sneak into the house- they would hear him, and then they would stop their conversation abruptly and tell him to go back outside. 

“What do you think they’re talking about, Clem?” Tommy whispered, despite the fact that they were alone. “Do you think you can sneak in and hear?”

Clementine tried to shake her tiny little moth head. “No,” She answered. “You know the answer as much as I do. I can’t go close without straining our bond, and you know how much that hurts…” If she could, Clementine would be shuddering right now in horror. “But I definitely don't think it’s anything good. Why would he just bring WIlbur and Techno, but not us?”

“Because they never trust us with anything!” Tommy threw his hands in the air with annoyance. “They never even trust us with the tiniest bit of information! I swear, it’s like they’re being so overprotective, or something! We’re not a baby, Clem!” He exclaimed with frustration. “I just wished they would say _something.”_ He stressed. 

“Hey, relax,” Tried to assure Clementine. “Maybe they’ll tell us afterwards.”

Tommy tried to calm himself, keeping that false hope in his mind. Maybe, this time, now that he’s thirteen, they’ll tell him something. Maybe this time, they’ll let him in all of their little secrets that bothered him as much as the sun flashing directly in his eyes. 

They never did tell him.

  
  


**_—Ω—_ **

  
  


“I’m really sorry for leaving you here alone so suddenly,” Phil said softly as he, Wilbur, and Techno approached the door with their dæmons. “I promise we’ll be back soon- in around a couple days, alright? We’ll try to come back as soon as we can, I promise.” He looked at his son sincerely. Tommy resisted the urge to look away from his father’s eyes. “There’s just something we need to check on really quickly.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Said Techno from the doorway. “We’ll be back in no time.” 

WIlbur nodded reassuringly. “Yeah! Think of it as having the whole house to yourself, alright?”

“Yeah, what Wil said,'' Phil shot Wilbur a look of thanks before turning back to Tommy. “Remember, there’s-” 

“Food in the cupboards if I need it, but if I need more, I should go to the market and be careful. If I’m at the market, don’t talk to strangers longer than I have to and make sure I leave during daylight hours. When night comes, lock the doors and close the windows. I got it.” Tommy said, like he was reading text off of a book. 

Phil let a laugh escape his lips. “Good,” He patted his son's head softly ruffling it slightly. “Be good for us, alright? Don’t cause too much trouble.” 

“Or we’ll beat ya up when we get home.” 

“Techno!” 

Wilbur chuckled, shaking his head slightly before giving Tommy a wave. “Later, Toms, we’ll be back as soon as possible.” 

And off they went. 

As the door closed, Tommy had only one thought in mind. Slowly, he turned to Clementine, who was a moth and floating besides him right next to his ear. 

“You know what we’re gonna do, Clem?”

“What?” 

“We’re gonna follow these fuckers and see what we’re up to!” 


	2. Of Promises and Followings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tommy goes to follow his family! Poggers!
> 
> And Niki meets up with two special people.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I....wanted to just get this chapter out of the way because chapters 3 and up is where the interesting stuff happens, which will most likely result into those being longer chapters! So I'm super excited to get to that point! 
> 
> I'm glad that the few of you that are enjoying this are! It really makes me happy! (: 
> 
> Also, before we start, because I don't want to keep you guys long, but CW: DESCRIPTIONS OF HEAVY INJURY AND BLOOD, PLEASE BE SAFE!

_Niki held her pine branch to her waist as she leveled onto the ground in front of the giant, red and white hotel. Zuko, who had butted his head on her leg, gave a small meow in greeting to the other dæmons present. She glanced at the other two people in front of her- a man with dark green hair and a gas mask, wearing a yellow shirt, whilst the woman next to him had long, fluffy, white hairy with a captain’s hat on her head. The man had a racoon dæmon, whilst the woman had a ram dæmon. Niki straightened herself, letting out a sigh as she looked at her two new companions._

_“Sam,” Niki nodded at the man, who gave her a nod in return. “Puffy, thank you for coming here. It really does mean a lot to me. Now, I wanted to ask you two a favor, if I may.” She began slowly._

_Puffy, instantly, had made a noise of affirmation. “Whatever you need, Niki, I’m sure Sam and I can handle it.” She smiled reassuringly._ _You know us. Now, what is it that you need?”_

_“You…” Niki paused, seeming to contemplate her words for a moment before responding. “You two are good with children, right?” She said, and even with her high-pitched and airy voice, she sounded...grounded._

_Puffy blinked. “I mean, yes, I would like to say we are. We sometimes look after this one kid, Tubbo, in the village since his dad isn’t around much. You know me, Niki, me and being a therapist and all, I’m bound to get adolescents and children. And, I have to admit, I do enjoy their company.” She then turned to the man with the raccoon dæmon. “Sam?”_

_“Well,” Sam started. “Since I do own this hotel, families do come in with their children from time to time. But I will say that I do enjoy their company. Kids have always had a soft spot in my heart.” He smiled fondly, most likely at a memory of his before snapping out of his little daydream to cock his head to the side. “Why, Niki?”_

_“I need help,” Niki said bluntly before continuing. “You know about how witches have visions? And do you know that Dream guy? I think he’s quite known in this part of the country. Anyhow, what you two need to know is that he’s after a child that's going to cross paths here. I need you to protect him. You’ll know him when you see him, I'm sure. Just look for a child coming here alone, following a group of people, alright?”_

_“...Dream?” Puffy gasped, sounding horrified with the information that was just laid out before her. “Dream, I- I know him personally, Niki, and…” She took in a breath. “Why would he do something like this? When you say “after” the child, I can only think of horrible things.”_

_“That…” Niki frowns. “...is something I can explain at the moment. But just know that he's going to try and capture the child. You two are the most trustful humans I have met in my centuries of living. Please, protect him.”_

_Sam glanced at Puffy, who, after a moment of composing herself, gave the man with the raccoon dæmon a nod. “We’ll do it,” He said to Niki. “When do you think he’ll arrive?”_

_Niki gave the two humans a smile. “In about a day,” She hummed. “I'm trusting you two. Thank you, Sam, Niki. I knew I could count on you.”_

_“Take care of yourself,” Puffy added, resting a hand on her ram dæmon. “Where are you traveling next?”_

_“Back home. There are some matters I need to attend to. Believe me, if I could help, I would do it in a heartbeat.” Niki sighed softly. “But...I'm confident that you two can do this. I believe in you.”_

_Sam let out a small laugh as his dæmon, Nook, chattered in agreement._

_“Just leave it to us, Nihachu.”_

  
  


**_—Ω—_ **

  
  


“Hurry up, Tommy!” 

“I'm coming, Clem, fucking hell! Slow down!” 

Currently, Tommy had a backpack on his shoulders as he ran after his dæmon, who was taking the form of a fox, at the moment. It reminded him of a friend of Wilbur’s, who had a fox dæmon himself. Fundy, he thinks the friend was called. As of now, Clementine was digging her face just above the ground, sniffing for something a few feet away from Tommy. 

When Tommy had caught up, he had kneeled down to give Clementine a small pat on the head, to which she leaned into the touch of. “Where did they go, Clementine?”

Clementine nudged her head to the right a bit. “That way,” Her ear twitched. “They're not far from here, actually. Slow pricks.” 

Tommy snickered at the comment before stretching as he got up again. “Good. Then we can catch up to them in no time! Come on, we got some bitches to catch!” 

Instantly, Tommy was on his feet, running towards where Clementine had pointed out. Clementine was running alongside him, leading the way. Right now, they were in an oak forest, weaving and passing through the forestry and trees. Tommy couldn't put down the feeling of excitement he felt in his chest. What would his family be up to? Fighting? Trading? Conversing with evil dictators? The possibilities ran through Tommy’s head, yet a lot of them were quite silly. 

(Logically, Tommy knew that his father and brothers wouldn't be battling a man with a griffin dæmon, saving the world from an unknown force, but it was a nice thought. He wanted to have fun, sue him). 

Tommy soon came to a stop as he started to hear voices from the faraway right. Quickly, and quite giddily so, he hid behind one of the trees to listen in. Clementine turned into a moth once again, resting on his head. He felt like a little kid again, playing hide-and-seek with his family. Automatically, he put a hand over his mouth, just in case. 

“How long do we have to go on for?” Tommy could hear a whine— Wilbur. “My feet are starting to fuckin’ fall off.” 

“Quiet, Wil,” That was Techno. “This is serious. We can talk about your poor feet later. We haven't even been walking that long. You just need to get out more.”

_“I_ need to get out more? Says you, who stays in the house all day. Tell me, _who_ goes out to the market to get our groceries? _Who_ has places they need to be almost everyday?” 

“Dad?” 

_“You—”_

Another voice interrupted his brother. _“Boys,”_ There was a hard and stern tone to it. “That's enough. Save your bickering for later. Right now, we need to focus on moving. There should be a village a few hours away from here, so we can stay there for the night before moving again.” 

A chorus of two voices answered it back. “…Sorry, Dad.”

Tommy could hear Phil sigh. “It's fine, it's just...I'm just worried and on edge. I just want us to focus on where we’re going and get this done and over with as fast as we possibly can.” 

A group of footsteps sounded just a bit away from the blonde. Holding his breath, Tommy slowly removed the hand from his mouth to peek over the tree to see what was going on. It was...fairly normal, to the thirteen-year-old’s disappointment. They were grouped together; Phil was in the front, followed by Techno and Carl, who had Wilbur and Milo hot on their trail. Kris was flying above them all, chirping now and again to Phil, who nodded up at her. 

Phil was wearing a deep green coat, his iconic bucket hat resting on his head as he traveled on. Wilbur was wearing a black, shirt buttoned up coat, wearing a yellow turtleneck underneath it along with the glasses on his face. Techno, on the other hand, clashed against their colors with his deep blood red coat and white collar. Not to mention the crown that he seemed to always wear on his head, flaunting it whenever they went in public. Another thing that Tommy didn't know the story behind. 

(Tommy eyed the bandages on Techno’s left hand warily. Did he change them recently? It looked like it. And even if Tommy didn't know much, as his family loved to keep him in the dark, he does know _one_ story. Granted, it was only gifted to him when he was younger, after he had annoyed Techno ruthlessly about why he had two fingers missing, one day.

He still remembers the day when Techno came home with the injury.

Tommy and Clementine had been playing inside, messing around with one another. Clementine was frequently changing shape, as she was just getting used to it. Tommy was around eight at the time, laughing with delight as his dæmon changed from a small tiger, to a crow, and into a wolverine in just a matter of seconds. It was peaceful. 

Until Tommy had heard a wrenching scream of pain coming from the front door. 

He remembers getting up instantly, wanting to check on what had happened. Clementine had turned into a small raven, flying beside him as he neared towards the doorway, where the screaming had come from. 

Techno was there, kneeling on the floor, sobs of agony leaving his throat. For a moment, Tommy was stunned. He had never seen his big brother cry before- Techno was stoic, cool and collected, so why was he breaking down? Tommy didn't understand. At that moment, he was the first person out of everyone in their family to find Techno. 

His older brother, racking with sobs, was clutching his left hand. Carl was beside him, and she, although seeming like she was straining herself, tried to nudge her snout onto Techno’s injured hand. It was if she was trying to heal it, but there was nothing she could have done. There was so much blood, Tommy remembers. Blood gushing out of Techno’s hand like a waterfall. The blood was dripping heavily onto the wooden floor of their home, and there was already a large puddle of the sticky red substance underneath Techno’s hand. 

“Tech!” Tommy had cried out in alarm, Clementine squawking next to him as she flew down next to Carl. “Tech, are you okay? Why are you crying? You're hurt!” He had gasped. 

A heavy pair of footsteps ran down the stairs along with panting breaths. 

“What happened? I heard screaming. Dad’s on his way, and— _Techno?_ Oh shi- uh, Tommy! Tommy, close your eyes!” Wilbur was there in an instant behind his little brother, covering the younger’s eyes with his lengthy fingers. 

Tommy had tried to pry them off of him. “Wilby! Wilby, stop! Tech’s hurt! Help him!” He had cried out, feeling tears of his own, but Wilbur’s hand hadn't budged. “Wilby, help him!” 

“Dad’s on his way, Toms, he’s gonna help Techno, alright? Lets just...go to your room, okay? Dad’s gonna make Techno better, I promise.” 

“But he—” 

But their father had appeared, and when Tommy had managed to take Wilbur’s fingers apart slightly, he could see that Phil was crouching over Techno, whispering something to him. Phil was cradling Techno’s left hand in his own, and from where Tommy was, he couldn't see the full thing, but it was enough. There was so much blood. Why was there so much blood? Blood coated all over his hands, and there were stumps where two of his fingers were- _where were his fingers?_

Wilbur had dragged him away then, and Tommy could hear him pushing down bile back into his throat. He sounded sick. “Tommy….” His voice was shaky. “Let's go back to your room, bubs, okay? I'll...I'll read you a story….” 

Tommy had agreed, not wanting to see Techno’s state anymore. It had hurt too much, to see his usual calm brother in so much pain. It took a hold of his heart and ripped it in two. The pain was almost as unbearable to him as it would be if his connection with Clementine was severed. He hated seeing his older brother like that. Helpless, scared, and alone. 

After that day, however, Techno was never the same. He always seemed to be on guard about everything, and he had gained a new sword. It was deathly sharp, glistening with diamonds, which is the mineral it was made out of. Yet, Techno had made an extreme effort to keep it locked away- especially from Tommy. The only times he ever got a sight of it was the few times he caught Techno sparring with Phil. And even then, behind those eyes, Techno looked….terrified. Like he was holding himself back. 

Techno hadn't told him what happened for a long, long time). 

“But, Dad…” Wilbur spoke up a bit hesitant as they continued onwards, Tommy hopping after them from the sidelines. “They couldn't possibly be serious, could they? It couldn't be. How would they even know about him?”

Phil shook his head slightly. “I don't know, Wilbur. I don't know, but I'm not going to be taking any chances. If there's even the slightest bit of possibility that this person, whoever they are, is serious, I want to meet them. I want to know what the hell they're thinking, and what makes them think they have the _audacity_ to threaten us with something like this.” There was an edge of anger in Phil’s voice, which surprised Tommy. Kris had flow down briefly to land on Phil’s shoulder to calm him down. 

“It would make sense that they knew _of_ him, but not _about_ him, which is the tricky thing,” Techno nodded. “How they knew...I don't even want to think about it. I just want to know what they want from him so badly that they feel the need to do this.” 

“And if they ever so laid a _hand_ on him—” Wilbur began, suddenly looking furious. Milo had slightly bristled beside him in aggression as well. 

Phil had interrupted him. “We won't let that happen. That's why we left him home, isn't it? He’ll be fine and safe. They probably knew that we’d be coming, and if they want to speak properly with us, then they won't try anything.”

Tommy skidded to a stop, a look of confusion etching his face. His family continued forwards as Clementine stopped flying besides him. Looking at her, Tommy could tell that she felt the exact same bewilderment that he did. 

He slowly whispered to Clementine, who descended down onto his shoulder. “They're talking about me, aren't they?”

“No shit,” She muttered back, but Tommy could pick up the hint of worry in her tone and in the way she ruffled her feathers. “Let’s keep going. We need to catch up, and I can't fly that high without Kris seeing me.” 

Clementine turned into a mouse, dipping into his short, brown coat pocket as Tommy trudged forward, trying to keep up with his family. “I just don't understand why they wouldn't bring me along if it included me.” He said out loud quietly. “If it's about me, shouldn't I come?” 

_“You would think,”_ Clementine thought to him. It was too risky talking to him out in the open when they were so close to his family. 

Tommy let out a sigh. He didn't know what to do, but he knew one thing; he wanted answers. He wanted to know what his family was hiding from him, now more than ever. Especially since he knows now that it's about _him._

And he’s going to get his information. 

  
  


**_—Ω—_ **

  
  


In total, the trek had taken a good five hours before they reached the town. 

The town was called _Manberg,_ and it was always said to be the sibling of the town where Tommy and his family lived nearby, _L’Manberg._ However, Manberg seemed more serious and more into mechanics and gadgets rather than L’Manberg, which was a bustling, small, regular town. The streets of Manberg were packed tight with everything. Homes, markets, hotels— there was anything you could ever need, and Tommy and Clementine were absolutely fascinated. 

On the flip side though, that meant that he could lose sight of his family very quickly. Already there were a few times where they would leave his sight of vision, and then he’d have to go scouting for them while also trying to be kept hidden amongst the crowds of endless people. It was hectic, but Tommy liked hectic; he could manage fine. 

(However, Tommy couldn't shake the feeling that he was being watched. He could almost feel the intense eyes that bore into the back of his skull, but if he looked around, he saw nothing except for groups and groups upon different people. None of which were looking directly at him. 

The closest clue that he could pick up from his supposed watcher was a strange raccoon that was staring at him, sitting on top of one of the boxes next to a nearby outpost. Just as Clementine was about to shift into another animal to seek the raccoon out, it had skidded away, disappearing behind an alleyway. 

Tommy had shrugged it off, but he didn't forget).

As Tommy traveled on, drowning in the crowd of people but still able to hear bits and pieces of his family’s conversation, he could hear the uncomfortableness that Techno was feeling. He was practically keeping his eyes glued to the floor, only elbowing Wilbur harshly when he had taken a look at him to tease his twin for his behavior. Phil, on the other hand, was looking for a place to stay. 

Tommy and Clementine stayed close, always swimming through the mounds and mounds of people, saying “Excuse me!” or “Pardon!” when he was in a hurry to catch up. Phil did teach him manners, after all. Though...apparently not much, considering his personality. 

(That didn't, of course, silence his urge to call a man “bitch” when he stubbornly refused to get out of the kid’s way. What can he say? It was annoying, and he was in a hurry. He had a mission to complete, after all). 

Finally, though, they had been able to find what they were looking for. A large, large red and white hotel that seemed to crawl up to the heavens with how big and tall it was. People were bustling in and out of the place already, but it seemed not that busy, compared to the other places. Tommy could only hear a faint word or two from Phil before he watched his family disappear behind the doors of the hotel, their dæmons following close behind. 

Clementine, now as an alley cat, was about to follow when Tommy had picked her up. She let out a meow in protest as he gripped onto her a bit tightly so that she wouldn't get out of his grip. 

“What the bloody hell are you doing?” 

Clementine scoffed. “Following them, obviously. What, you have a better idea, genius?” 

Tommy nodded. “Yes! Yes, I do! We _don't_ follow them. Do you _want_ us to get fucking caught? You know how good Carl and Kris are at eyeing things out of the blue! Not to mention Wilbur and Techno on their own!” 

Clementine let out a small grumble. “You worry too much; we’ll be fine. As long as we don't overreact and not fuck up, this will be the perfect opportunity to get more information! I thought that was our goal?” 

“Yeah, but another one of our goals is _to not get caught, Clementine.”_ He spoke slowly, like a father scolding their child. “You know what? Why am I even trying to fight with you? We’re not going, end of story. I mean, come on, following them into a place so obvious?” 

Clementine tried to shrug, but as she did so, she sent him a pointed glare, narrowing her eyes. 

“That's a complete shitty idea! That's crazy! One-hundred-percent wank, Clem. There is no way in _hell—”_

  
  
  
  


“Hi, and welcome to Sam Industries: The Big Redstone Hotel! How may we be of assistance to you today, sir?” 

“Hello, can I have a room for me and my dæmon, Clementine?” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there we have it! That's a wrap! Ooh, now we're done with the boring bits and we're off to get to the more exciting stuff! I have this whole thing planned out it's so crazy and I'm not used to it? Usually, I just make random stories in my head, but I never write them because I always feel like they're too out there, like this one. But I'm glad this got even a small amount of recognition, no matter how small it may be! 
> 
> Next chapter we'll be more introduced to Sam, Puffy, and a bit of Tubbo! So look out for that! 
> 
> Please leave a comment if you enjoyed, but no pressure! As always, if even one person like this, then that's a win in my book! Dedicating this fic to you, that one person who read this! But anyways! Please remember to take care of yourself, everyone! Rest, eat, drink some water, treat yourself- just take care! Because there are a lot of people out there who care about your well being- me included!

**Author's Note:**

> And that's it for this one small chapter! Again, don't worry, longer chapters are coming soon! I honestly can't wait to complete this work- I know exactly what I'm going to write, and it's so exciting! I just really hope you guys enjoyed it, even though I personally think it's badly written and rushed, but oh well!
> 
> As always, comments, kudos, and even just reading the simple text means the world to me! They really do give me a lot of serotonin and motivation! And in addition to that, as always, remember to take care of yourself! Both your physical and mental state are important, and if anyone tells you otherwise, they can throw hands with me! Take care out there, guys! Because there are people who care about you- one of those people being me!


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